US Elections 2024: Donald Trump’s victory, says Ruchir Sharma, isn’t the rise of the right as it’s been perceived—it’s a referendum on a system that many Americans feel is failing them.
In an exclusive chat with Business Today's Executive Director Rahul Kanwal, Sharma attributes Trump’s win over Kamala Harris to deep-rooted discontent with the U.S. economy, pointing out that 70% of Americans believe the country is on the wrong track.
“This wasn’t a right-wing surge,” Sharma insists. “It’s a protest vote, a clear rejection of the status quo.”
Sharma explains that this protest vote marks a rare moment in U.S. history, with the incumbent party losing three consecutive elections: Democrats after Obama, Trump in 2020, and now Harris. He argues that this “anti-incumbency wave” has swept through developed nations, where people increasingly believe that the current economic system doesn’t work for the average citizen.
Even in the U.S., traditionally seen as a bastion of capitalism, Sharma points to two-thirds of Americans who feel the system needs a dramatic overhaul.
Trump’s recent sweep across all seven swing states, including Georgia, Pennsylvania, and Michigan, gave him 312 electoral votes, easily clearing the 270 needed. He widened his margins even in areas that leaned Democratic in the previous election, securing victories in North Carolina and Nevada as well. This decisive performance, Sharma suggests, reflects a deeper voter frustration that goes beyond party lines.
Trump’s win came despite a criminal conviction and two impeachments, signaling that voters were willing to overlook controversies in favor of change.
Sharma notes that this back-and-forth between parties—Republican and Democrat—marks the fourth straight shift in presidential control, something the U.S. hasn’t seen since the late 19th century.
The volatility in power only underscores the public’s yearning for a government that can address their needs, he says, noting that even a convicted former president secured the win. President Biden, who withdrew from the race citing age concerns, is set to meet Trump at the Oval Office on Wednesday, symbolizing yet another shift in this unprecedented era of political upheaval.